The Takeaway: Would Hamas complicate US plans for reset with Palestinians? Also: the back story on the spat between Israel and Jordan; Gulf post-COVID economic trends; Turkey’s Kurds; Egypt and Somalia; and more! Originals
Egypt sentences activist Sanaa Seif to 18 months in prison Seif, who had been in pretrial detention since June, was convicted Wednesday of spreading false news and misusing social media. Egypt
Ukraine rejects Iran's final report on downed passenger plane The Iranian government said last year's shooting down of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 was the result of a human error. Iran
Palestinians receive first batch of vaccines through COVAX More than 60,000 doses of the AstraZeneca and Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines arrived in Ramallah on Wednesday. Palestine
Anti-war groups gain new traction with Democratic leaders after Soleimani strike House Democrats are considering a three-pronged offensive to limit President Donald Trump’s ability to wage war with Iran after abandoning the effort last year. Congress
US set to reposition forces in Iraq after strike on Soleimani The US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State in Iraq is set to reposition forces throughout the country after the Iraqi parliament urged international troops to leave over the weekend. Iraq
Iran opposition lobbied Giuliani, CEO of United Against Nuclear Iran New lobbying disclosures raise new questions about the ties between the hawkish organization United Against Nuclear Iran to the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq. United States
Erdogan treads carefully on Soleimani killing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was cautious in his first comments on the US killing of Iran’s Qasem Soleimani, criticizing the move but being careful not to align Ankara with Tehran. Turkey
Iran's fractious hard-liners hold edge as parliamentary election approaches Despite their divisions, Iran's conservatives and hard-liners are still likely to dominate the legislative elections next month, as many progressives are rejecting the vote entirely. Iran
Pentagon pushed back internally on strike against Iranian military leader In the days preceding President Donald Trump's order for the drone strike that took out Qasem Soleimani, Pentagon officials were split over whether to carry out the strike. Iraq
Istanbul's Arter ‘pushing boundaries' of Turkey's art scene Turkey’s newest contemporary art museum promises an ambitious program for 2020 and pledges to remain a haven for artistic expression. Turkey
Large turnout in Iran for Soleimani funeral Iran witnessed some of its largest crowds for the funeral of Qasem Soleimani, who was killed in a US strike Jan. 3. Iraq
Are Iraq's PMU militias planning to put an end to protests? Following the funeral of the top Iranian commander of the Quds Force, Iraqi militias are preparing to clamp down on protesters. Iraq
Economics or politics: What's driving Turkey’s electric car project? The limited scope of Turkey’s electric car project points to political motives by a government under strain rather than economic goals to help transition the automotive industry. Turkey
2020 dawns in Egypt with viral video of mob harassing women Footage of a mob harassing two women during a New Year's Eve celebration went viral in Egypt. Egypt
Iraqi parliament takes nonbinding decision to end US troop presence Following the assassination of Qasem Soleimani in Baghdad, Iraq’s parliament voted for a resolution demanding the prime minister expel all foreign troops from the country. Iraq
